This invention relates generally to a cooking apparatus and, more specifically, to a cooking apparatus providing automatic complex motion of a saute pan at an adjustable rate for preparation of fettuccine or the like.
The application of sauce to pasta has long been considered a specialty skill in the art of food preparation. While the application process can be briefly described as exposure of a pan containing noodles and a sauce to heat during agitation of the pan, this only barely indicates the interrelationship of factors which can make the difference between, for instance, gourmet fettuccine and a discarded experiment. The formulation of the sauce is itself an important factor, and may incorporate a liquid dairy product ingredient such as cream, milk or melted butter which is especially sensitive to even momentary application of localized high heat. Thus one purpose of pan agitation is to circulate the sauce and take advantage of heat without permitting local burning and the radical alteration of flavor by dissolution of the combustion products in the sauce. Another purpose of agitation is to assure that the noodles are circulated through and coated evenly by the sauce at a rate appropriate to achievement of the coating consistency desired by those consumers with an educated taste for fettuccine.
In the prior art, the process of agitation for noodle circulation and coating and avoidance of sauce burns has been conducted by hand. Those who possess the physical strength and concentration necessary for pan agitation over an extended period of time, and the visual and taste skills necessary to determine the on-going status of the preparation process, have been considered very valuable specialists and are paid accordingly. Thus the end product of the process has also been considered a delicacy, and the restaurant industry has long recognized that customers pay generously for a fine product of a skilled fettuccine chef. It can readily be appreciated, therefore, that it has heretofore been considered impossible to automate the process of agitation of a sauce pan containing noodles and sauce over heat in order to produce a gourmet-quality product. At the same time, it can be seen that such a system would be highly useful and find ready acceptance in the market place, by making fine fettuccine available in larger quantities, and freeing the attention of the skilled chef for other matters in a restaurant kitchen. It remains clear, therefor, that the prior art fails to provide an automated mechanism for pan agitation which provides a complex pan motion sufficient to circulate noodles and sauce and with adjustments sufficient to permit consistent application of sauce to noodles at the desired rate and amount.